Noun

The act of criticising; a critical judgment passed or expressed; a critical observation or detailed examination and review; a critique; animadversion; censure.

The politician received a lot of public criticism for his controversial stance on the issue.

* {{quote-book, year=1874, author=Thomas Hardy, title=Far From the Madding Crowd, publisher=Barnes & Noble Classics (2005 publication of 1912 Wessex edition), page=276,

passage=Her attitude was that of a person who listens, either to the external world of sound, or to the discourse of thought. A close criticism might have detected signs proving that she was intent on the latter alternative.}}

Noun

(en noun)

The act of objecting.

* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-07, author= Ed Pilkington

, volume=188, issue=26, page=6, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= ‘Killer robots’ should be banned in advance, UN told , passage=In his submission to the UN, [Christof] Heyns points to the experience of drones. Unmanned aerial vehicles were intended initially only for surveillance, and their use for offensive purposes was prohibited, yet once strategists realised their perceived advantages as a means of carrying out targeted killings, all objections were swept out of the way.}}

A statement expressing opposition, or a reason or cause for expressing opposition (generally followed by the adposition to ).

(legal) An official protest raised in a court of law during a legal trial over a violation of the rules of the court by the opposing party.